British Columbians saw their paycheques shrink in September

British Columbians saw their paycheques shrink in September after several months of growth.

According to Statistics Canada, average weekly earnings (including overtime) of payroll employees in British Columbia dropped 2.2 per cent in September to $978.10. This was the first decline after four consecutive months of growth, according to Statistics Canada. Compared with a year earlier, average weekly earnings were up 2.6 per cent in the province.

British Columbians working in retail – the sector with the largest number of employees — saw salaries drop 1.8 per cent. One reason for the drop may have been the increase of the employees as the number of payroll employees grew 0.5 per cent in September to 2.3 million.

Compared to other Canadians, British Columbians earned less as national average weekly earnings stood at $1,004, little changed from August but up 1.8 per cent from September 2017. Statistics Canada recorded 16,336,759 payroll employees, an increase of 0.2 per cent.

Looking elsewhere, as average weekly earnings grew across most provinces, led by Prince Edward Island and British Columbia (notwithstanding the drop in September). Earnings remained largely unchanged in Saskatchewan, Alberta and Newfoundland and Labrador.